Rain whispered against the rooftops that night, gentle and restless, like a secret trying to be heard, The storm hadn't come, not fully, just a light misting that clung to the windows and rooftops of the Asoluka estate.
Kael lay in bed, wide awake.
The servants' quarters were quiet, a clock ticked somewhere in the hallway, marking the early hours past midnight.
He rolled onto his back, staring at the ceiling.
Something inside him pulsed , not fear, not exactly. More like… a call. A low thud in his chest.
The pendant.
He slipped his hand under the pillow and touched it.
The small, silver spiral had warmed slightly, like it was alive, like it had waited for him to notice.
He sat up slowly.
Maybe it was nothing. Maybe he was losing it.
But the feeling didn't go away.
Quietly, he dressed up, grabbed his hoodie, and slipped into the hallway.
He didn't bother weaeing his shoes, The house was asleep.
Except for one part.
The East Wing.
---
The door was closed, just as he had last seen it.
Dust still lined the floor.
The air grew heavier the closer he stepped.
Kael paused.
Then, as if pulled, he reached out.
The moment his fingers brushed the handle, the pendant under his shirt pulsed.
Warmth flowed through his chest, and the door clicked softly, swinging inward without resistance.
The room welcomed him.
Same cracked mirror. Same smell of dust and something older.
But something was different.
A shallow basin sat on a pedestal in the center of the room.
Low golden light shimmered from within, dancing like candlelight on water.
Kael stepped toward it, cautious.
He looked inside.
At first, he saw only his reflection.
Then, images began to shift across the surface like ripples in a pond.
A younger version of himself laughing, running through a wide hall lined with tall windows.
His mother, not as he knew her, not tired and sick, but radiant, dressed in royal blue, her hair pinned back with gold combs.
She stood beside a man Kael didn't recognize.
Tall, broad-shouldered, with stern eyes and a calm presence. He wore long robes.
On his chest, the same spiral symbol as the pendant.
Kael reached toward the basin… and the images vanished.
A message appeared, etched into the basin's rim:
"Every flame begins as a spark."
---
Kael staggered back. The mirror behind him flickered.
He turned.
It no longer showed his reflection.
Instead, it displayed a long corridor. Stone walls, lined the sides, burning with blue fire.
At the far end stood a throne. Empty.
Then, movement.
A cloaked figure stepped into view.
A woman.
Her hood was low, but her face slowly lifted, just enough for him to see her eyes.
Wet with tears.
She was beautiful, but broken.
Her gaze met his, and she didn't blink.
She didn't speak aloud, but Kael heard her clearly.
Inside his mind. Inside his chest.
"They've hidden your name, Kael Alvin. But names... remember."
His breath caught.
She pressed her hand to her chest.
"My blood called yours. You heard it, didn't you?"
She stepped forward, and her voice dropped to a whisper:
"Find the Threshold. Before they do."
Her hand lifted. The mirror cracked…
Light burst from within…
And everything went white.
---
When Kael opened his eyes, the mirror was shattered.
But no glass littered the floor.
Only silence.
Footsteps echoed.
He turned sharply.
Sai stood in the doorway, her loose hair damp from the mist outside.
Her expression was unreadable, but her eyes were wide.
"You saw her, didn't you?" she asked.
Kael didn't answer immediately.
His heart was still pounding.
He looked down at the pendant in his hand.
Cold again.
"Who was she?" he asked quietly.
Sai stepped further into the room.
"I don't know. Not exactly. But… she knew your name."
"Alvin," Kael said slowly.
The word felt strange in his mouth.
Sai nodded.
"Your mother's name before she married your father.
She never used it again.
But some names… they don't forget so easily."
Kael turned back to the basin.
He wanted to ask more.
But he didn't.
Not yet.
---
Later that morning, just before sunrise, Kael sat beneath the open veranda behind the East Wing.
The sky was soft with pale orange light.
He held the pendant in one hand.
He didn't understand what was happening.
He didn't understand who the woman was,
Or why she looked at him like she knew his soul.
But something had changed.
Something had awakened.
He breathed in the cool morning air and whispered into it:
"Alvin... that's me, isn't it?"